Jane Russell - Fine and Dandy

In 1958, Jane Russell made a stereo record that would become her personal favourite and these are the first 12 tracks on this CD. Jane was given carte blanche in the recording process and as Jane remembers, "I picked the songs and the band. I knew I wanted a small group. I got Billy May to arrange and when I needed a piano player, Peggy Lee found me Joe Rotondi. I finally got to make a record the way I wanted to make it." While she wouldn't be classified a jazz singer, Jane's phrasing and her effortless ability to swing demonstrate how much influence this genre has had on her. She injects a sense of the blues in "Love On The Rocks" and "Born To Blue". She let's her notes linger on the Gershwin standard, "How Long Has This Been Going On'" making it sensuous and seductive, while on "When A Woman Loves A Man", her rich alto voice easily slides from high to low in just the right places to give the song a sense of irony. Jane's sharp sense of rhythm is abundantly apparent on "Fine And Dandy", "Take It Easy" and "There Will Never Be Another You". As a bonus, we have included 5 never-before-released recordings of Jane. Accompanied by a trio Jane belts out "Sing You Sinners", exudes a cheerful optimism on "I've Got The World On A String" and delivers a hauntingl vocal to "One Way Ticket To The Blues". The last two songs presented here are from Jane's films, "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "Macao". From the former we are treated to a 1952 demo recording of "Diamond Are A Girl's Best Friend". From the latter, we have Jane's emotion-filled version of the bar-room classic, "One For My Baby". Retrieved from the original 1950 acetate recording made for the filming and not for commercial release, Jane's performance is arguably her finest cinematic musical moment.